1. The Field of the Invention.
This invention relates to a products fabricated from crumb rubber. More particularly, the present invention is directed to a flexible tile made of crumb rubber with a heating element disposed therein configured for use as a heated non-allergenic animal mat, the tile also being modular and having a side configured for mating with an adjacent tile and an electrical coupling therebetween.
2. The Background Art
Domesticated animals, such as dogs and cats, are kept for many reasons including work, show, and pets. These animals can be valuable and play an important role in society. Working animals, such as guard dogs, perform valuable services. Show animals have prized characteristics. Pets often treated as a member of the family.
Many of these animals, however, are kept outdoors because of the problems they pose indoors. For example, keeping a pet in the house can result in hair and odor being deposited on clothes, furniture, and carpet; scratching of furniture, walls and doors; and chewing of clothing, furniture and other items.
Keeping these animals outdoors, however, can pose other problems, especially in areas with moderate or cold climates. Keeping a pet outdoors in inclement weather can be uncomfortable or even dangerous for an animal. The loss of a family pet can be akin to losing a family member. The loss of a working or show animal can also be a severe financial loss. While some animals have characteristics that enable them to survive outdoors, others do not.
Various solutions have been proposed to solve the problems associated with keeping animals outdoors. For example, small, animal-sized doors have been installed in doors and walls to permit the animal to come indoors during inclement weather. One problem with these small doors is that they allow animals inside at any time, along with the associated problems. In addition, these small doors can be large enough to allow human intruders access to the home, or permit small children to wander out of the house.
Another proposed solution has been the use of small, animal-sized houses, such as those commonly known as dog houses. Although these small houses do protect animals from rain and wind, they do little to protect the animal from the ambient cold.
Another proposed solution is to leave the garage door ajar, thus allowing the animal access to the garage. However, leaving the garage door ajar has the same disadvantages inherent with dog houses, in that the garage is still typically cold and a garage door left ajar also invites human intruders.
Another solution is to put a heating pad in the outside environment to provide heat for the animal. One problem with this solution is that heating pads are not configured for use in the outside environment or with animals. A heating pad left outdoors may become soiled, wet, malodorous, and harbor harmful microorganisms. In addition, a heating pad is not suited to resist an animals clawing or chewing. Thus exposing the animal to the risk of electrocution. Furthermore, conventional the heating pads are not configured to repel moisture encountered in the outside environment. Therefore, if they become wet, they can become an electrical hazard.
Because of these problems, animals are often left outside to fend for themselves against the elements. The animals will often find various means of shelter, for example, under cars where the engine provides warmth. These various shelters may be hazardous to the animal. For example, an animal taking shelter under the car, can get run over or get oil or chemicals on its coat or such hazardous that may also be ingested by the animal.
Another solution is to provide a bed for the animal, which usually comprises a blanket, pillow, or special doughnut-shaped bed. The problem with these beds is that the fabric may become wet and thus unattractive to the animal. In addition, the bed may lose its appeal to the animal.
In view of the foregoing, it will become apparent that a heating pad specifically adapted for use in an outdoor environment will be a significant advancement in the art. It would also be a significant advancement in the art to provide a site of warmth which will deter the roaming of an animal which might otherwise find dangerous, undesirable shelters.
Directly and indirectly heated flooring is known. However, these surfaces are commonly made of materials which may cause allergic or other reactions in animals. For example, dogs or cats may have an allergic reaction resulting in dermatologic conditions and respiratory ailments ranging from mild to severe.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,878,332, issued Nov. 7, 1989, to Drake discloses a method for installing an electrical heating cable embedded in a layer of gypsum and cement based floor underlayment.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,922,084, issued May 1, 1990, to Hutter discloses an apparatus for heating floors comprising rectangular blocks with heating coils mounted on the blocks' surfaces. The blocks are made of a heat-insulating material, so that heat released through the coils travels in one direction. The blocks may be made of TEFLON, silicone, hard foam, or synthetic rubber. U.S. Pat. No. 4,967,057 issued Oct. 30, 1990, to Bayless et al., discloses a flexible heating mat for preventing the accumulation of snow and ice on a walkway. The mat, which may be rubber, has a flat flexible mat casing with upper and lower surfaces and a heating strip within the casing.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,990,744, issued Feb. 5, 1991, to Willner discloses an apparatus for heating floors. It has a thin heat-conducting substrate and a resistant heating wire positioned within the substrate. The substrate may be a bicomponent polymer such as nylon or PVC.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,003,157, issued Mar. 26, 1991, to Hargrove discloses an apparatus with a ribbed mat made from a resilient polymeric material.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,032,428, issued Jun. 11, 1991, to Hegstad discloses a surface coating or composite layer for heating floor surfaces. The surface coating has a foundation layer of plastic material, a heating cable placed on the foundation layer, another layer of plastic material covering the heating cable, and thermally-conducting particles embedded therein, and a covering layer.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,291,000, issued Mar. 1, 1994, to Hornberg discloses a snow melting heater mat with a rigid or cellular mat containing electrically resistant heating cables connected together using flexible connectors.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,380,988, issued Jan. 10, 1995, to Duyer discloses a heat mat structure for melting ice and snow. It has a plurality of thin, flat mats, with a laminate structure. Each mat has a substantially rigid back, an electrically resistant heating element which is surrounded by plastic layers and a semirigid upper surface layer.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,461,213, issued Oct. 24, 1995, to Rodin discloses a heated floor having a sublayer which is laid on an existing floor, a series of heating cables laid on the sublayer, and separated by sheet material, such as gypsum, polyurethane, plastic, or particle board, and a surface layer.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,591,365, issued Jan. 7, 1997, to Shields discloses an open lattice snow melting apparatus with a flexible heating mat having an open lattice arrangement. An electrical heating element is arranged in the mat. The mat may be vulcanized plastic such as polyethylene, polypropylene, or other similar polymeric material.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,614,292, issued Mar. 27, 1997, to Saylor discloses a thermal walkway covering having an insulated bottom layer, a metal layer composed of carbonized electrically conducted rubber, and a top layer made of UV-resistant rubber or plastic.
As indicated above, one of the problems with these devices is the materials with which they are made. Such materials can cause allergic reactions in animals. Thus, when making products for use with animals, it is important to use materials which are nonallergenic. In addition, it is also important to use materials which are inexpensive and recyclable. With the amount of plastic currently being generated, and plastic's resistance to biodegradation, it is important to use recycled materials.
Another disadvantage with a number of the schemes taught by the above-mentioned patents is that they can not be easily configured for the desired size. Animals come in many different sizes, and thus their differing sizes needs to be accommodated. For example, a small dog, such as a Chihuahua, has different requirements than a Great Dane. Too small a surface area will not satisfy a large animal, while heating too large a surface area will be inefficient and wasteful of energy.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to develop a heated mat, pad or tile for use with animals, such as house pets. It would also be advantageous to develop such a mat made of inexpensive, non-allergenic, recycled material. It would be advantageous to develop such a mat capable of being easily coupled with other mats to form a larger heated mat.